How to make a rug: Getting Started

Braided rug project: I have been wanted to make a rug for a few years now, and just haven’t had a place to put one. Bryans grandma made MANY of these rugs over the years, and has passed her knowledge onto me. She really was a talented and creative person! So I have know how to make a rug for year, but haven’t put knowledge into action. She made hers mostly out of old corduroy pants that someone had given her. This led to a very eclectic color pallet. I decided to go for a more coordinated look and went out and bought fabric. Unfortunately, here in Hong Kong we are greatly lacking in craft stores, okay there are NONE! So, on a trip into China a few weeks ago I went to the fabric market there to see what I could find. The selection is great for clothes making, not so great for crafting :o) I was able to find a few different textures and colors though to suit my need. Over this next series of posts, I am going to share how to make a rug from fabric strips.

I made approx. 4 inch strips out of all the fabric, some just ripped and others I had to cut. A rotary cutter would have been handy for this.

Here is one strip….

I then sewed each piece over on itself on both sides, leaving a finished edge, that hopefully won’t fray. Some of the fabric didn’t sew very easily in this way, I think because of the way it was cut/ripped. But, I’m thinking that when its all braided in, it won’t matter if there are a few puckers.

I left about 3/4 inches un- sewn at the start and end of each piece. This is to attach the pieces as I am braiding.

Some finished strips…

At this point in my project, my sewing machine stopped working, so it’s now in the shop.
For further instructions see:
Braiding with five strands
Finished Product
braided plastic kitchen rug

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